Sri Lanka
As soon as I landed in Bandaranaike International Airport in Colombo, Sri Lanka I had heard the news of an orphanage of a kind I didn’t aware of. An elephant orphanage. Our guide Mr. Sunil Gamage claimed that it was the only elephant orphanage in Asia. I made up mind to visit the Orphanage during my stay in Sri Lanka.
Pinnawala
We planned to visit Kandy and decided to stop over the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage for several hours. It is situated almost halfway between Colombo and Kandy near the town Kegalle. The concern was established in 1975 with the primary aim to provide care and protection to orphaned elephants of Sri Lanka. It is spread over about 25 acres of land nearby the rive Ma Oya. The orphanage has currently 93 elephants.
Experience
We entered through the gate at about 9 am local time. Ticket price was about 8 USD per person. We rushed to the area where the elephants were being bottle fed. The scenery was once in a lifetime experience. As the elephants left the area after feeding we roamed a little bit in the area to see the elephants roaming freely. It was evident that the elephants were treated nicely here and weren’t subject to any abuse, threat or stress. I learnt that the centre had become the premier captive breeding centre for Asian elephants with the help of local and foreign elephant experts.
We then flocked at the bank of the Ma Oya river to find the elephants enjoying with water and drinking as well. A large number of people gathered there to watch their activities. It was quite a spectacle.
Amenities of Elephants
The elephants of less than 3 years of age are being bottle fed two times a day by mahouts and employees. The elephants were taken twice to the river every day for bathing. Each adult animal is given 76 Kg of green matter and a 2 Kg food bag containing rice bran and maize.
If you plan to travel Sri Lanka, Don’t miss to pay a visit to Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage. It will be an experience you will ever cherish
All pictures were taken by my age old iPhone 4cXDEwNgWDi5ULefz1wb2NK7x5bFeS93Z7gikiwnz/IMG_1916.JPG)
Experience
We entered through the gate at about 9 am local time. Ticket price was about 8 USD per person. We rushed to the area where the elephants were being bottle fed. The scenery was once in a lifetime experience. As the elephants left the area after feeding we roamed a little bit in the area to see the elephants roaming freely. It was evident that the elephants were treated nicely here and weren’t subject to any abuse, threat or stress. I learnt that the centre had become the premier captive breeding centre for Asian elephants with the help of local and foreign elephant experts.
We then flocked at the bank of the Ma Oya river to find the elephants enjoying with water and drinking as well. A large number of people gathered there to watch their activities. It was quite a spectacle.
Amenities of Elephants
The elephants of less than 3 years of age are being bottle fed two times a day by mahouts and employees. The elephants were taken twice to the river every day for bathing. Each adult animal is given 76 Kg of green matter and a 2 Kg food bag containing rice bran and maize.
If you plan to travel Sri Lanka, Don’t miss to pay a visit to Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage. It will be an experience you will ever cherish
All pictures were taken by my age old iPhone 4